For a bogus pilot to gain employment in an airline is a serious matter; but when some 300 fake qualification holders – including pilots, cabin crew and engineers – are working for a national carrier, the problem extends beyond the airline to the country itself.

That’s the situation faced by Pakistan and its national airline Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).

The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ordered action taken against some 350 fake degree holders at the airline, including flight crew, engineers and flight attendants.

More than 30,000 educational qualifications submitted by over 16,000 employees of PIA are “under the process of verification” after the Supreme Court edict, the management of the national flag carrier said on Friday.

So far, the verification of 6000 employees’ educational degrees has been completed and 350 have been found guilty of submitting fake documents, the Pakistan News Service quoted a PIA spokesman as saying.

“The human resource administration department had started the process of verification of credentials of around 16,000 employees six months ago and it will be completed soon,” the spokesman said said.

The PIA has already stopped operations on five routes, Hyderabad, Nawabshah, Shikarpur, Jacobabad and Pasni, the Dubai-based Khaleej Times reported.

PIA is Pakistan’s largest airline with a fleet of 33 aircraft and at least 20 more on order.